Control device



H. A. SCHLAPAK CONTROL DEVICE Dec. 4, 1956 Filed Jan. 27, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet J HENRY SCHL/:PRK

HTTOFPNEY.

. 4, 1956 H. A. scHLAPAK CONTROL DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 27, 1955 INVENTOR. HENRY SCHLHPHK.

BY r

HTTORNFK United States Patent O CONTROL DEVICE Henry A. Schlapak, Riverton, Conn. Application January 27, 1955, Serial No. 484,538

Claims. (Cl. 92-46) This invention relates to a control device and more particularly to a device which is adapted to control the supply of a material in accordance with the consistency or fluidity thereof.

It is an object of the present invention to provide such a control device that is especially useful for controlling the supply of paper stock to a paper machine in such a manner that the amount of stock supplied to the machine will vary in accordance with any variations in the consistency of said stock.

A further object of the present invention is to provide such a. control device which may be adapted for other uses, such as for controlling the supply of a liquid or other mtaerial to a mixture of different materials in accordance with the consistency or liuidity of the mixture to thereby maintain the mixture constantly at a desired consistency.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will be more clearly understood from the following description and from the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a control device embodying my present invention.

Fig. 2 is a side view of said device.

Fit. 3 is a sectional side view on line 3--3 of Fig. l.

Fig. 4 is a side view of a portion of the device showing parts thereof in different positions.

Fig. 5 is a side view illustrating a valve which is operated by my improved control device.

In the embodiment of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings, my improved control device includes a frame 5 having mounted therein a supporting bracket 6 which has a plurality of laterally extending arms 7. 8 and 9 that carry bearing sleeves 10, 11 and l2, respectively, on a common axis extending vertically through said arms.

The arms 7 and 8 have rotatably mounted thereon a yoke 13 which is generally S-shaped and has an upper extension 14. that is rotatable upon the sleeve lll, and a lower extension l5 that is rotatable upon the sleeve ll, A counter-shaft 16 is rotatably mounted in the said sleeves and 11 and has a pulley 17 keyed thereto which is driven by a suitable motor 18 for rotating the said shaft.

A suitable paddle 19 is secured to the lower end of a vertical. shaft 20 which is rotatably mounted in the bearing sleeve 12 and the lower portion of the bearing sleeve 1l and is co-axial with the shaft 16. The said shaft 20 has keyed thereon a gear 21 which is driven by a pinion 22 on a counter-shaft 23 that is rotatably mounted in the extensions 14 and 15 and driven, through a pulley 24 and a belt 25, by means of a pulley 26 that is keyed to the shaft 16.

The upper portion of the yoke 13 is provided with a reverse extension 27 having a post 28 with a reduced upper portion 29 extending vertically therefrom. A sleeve 31 is rotatable upon said upper portion and adiustably secured thereto by means of a screw 3l which is threaded to said sleeve and engages the portion 29 of the post 28.

2,772,605 Patented Dec. 4, 1956 ricc A return spiral spring 32 is secured to the said sleeve 30 by its inner end and its outer end is anchored to the post 33 that is mounted upon a bracket 34 which extends from a portion of the frame 5 to a position adjacent to the said spring.

The said control device has an operating mechanism which includes a rocker shaft 35 that is rotatably mounted upon the top of the frame in the bearings 36-36 and carries an operating lever 37 which depends from the end of said shaft.

The said rocker shaft is operated by means of a rocker lever 38 that extends laterally therefrom and has serra tions 39 and 40 in the opposite side thereof adjacent its outer end. The said rocker lever is operated by means of a pair of opposed fingers 4l and 42 which extend from a pitman 43 that is oscillated by means of a crank stud 44 which extends eccentrically from a shaft 4S that is rotatably mounted in a bracket 46 and has n worm geur 47 thereon that is driven by a worm pinion 48 which is mounted upon the drive shaft 49 of the motor i8.

The free end of the pitman 43 is slidably mounted in a bearing Si) which is carried upon a supporting lever 5l having a hub 52 by means of which it is pivotally mounted upon the axis oi' the shaft 45. The said lever S1 is connected to the sleeve 30 by means ot' a pull cord 53 and a spring 54 is anchored to the frame 5S and connected to the said lever 51 for urging the said lcvcr loward its normal position against the pull cord 53.

The operation and scope of my improved control device will be fully understood from lhe following explanation:

The said control device is mounted in an operative position with relation to a valve through which stock materia] is supplied to a paper-making machine and with the paddle 19 thereof inserted into the said material, and thc lever 37 is operatively connected to the said valve by means of the link 37u.

When the motor 18 is energized, it will drive thc counter-shaft 16 and, through the counter-shaft 23, the pinion 22 and the gear 21, drive the paddle 19.

Rotation of the yoke 13 upon the bearing sleeves 10 and 11 is resisted by the spiral spring 32 and this resistance allows the transmission of power through the shaft 23 to drive the gear 21 and thereby rotate the paddle 19.

The motor 18, through the worm pinion 48, will also drive the shaft 45 and thereby rotate the crank 44 and oscillate the pitman 43 and cause the fingers 41 and 42 to position the lever 38 in accordance with the angular relation between the lever 51 and the said lever 38.

The resistance presented by the stock material to the rotation of the paddle 19 will cause the pinion 22 to pull up on the gear 2l and thereby cause the yoke 13 to rotate about the bearing sleeves 10 and 11 on the axis of the paddle shaft 20. Rotation of the said yoke 13 will also rotate therewith the sleeve 30, against the tension of the spring 32, and cause winding of the pull cord 53 around the said sleeve; thereby pulling the lever 51 and changing angular position with relation to the lever 38. This will cause the oscillating fingers 41 and 42 to rock the said lever 3S and the shaft 35 and thereby rock the lever 37 and operate the valve or any other stock control means which may be connected to the link 37a.

lt will be understood from the above description that as the resistance to the rotation of the paddle 19 is increased by a stock material of a heavy consistency, or lesser fluidity, the pulling of the gear pinion 32 around the gear 2l also increases and this increases the rotation of the yoke 13 and the distance to which the lever 51 is pulled and thereby causes the lever 37 to close the valve andv supply less stock material to the paper machine. When the stock materialj is of a lesser density, or greater fluidity, the resistance to the rotation of the paddle 19 becomes less and thereby reduces the amount of pull of the pinion 22 upon the gear 21 and, consequently, the rotation of the yoke 13. This, in turn, reduces the amount of pull on the lever 51 and the amount of travel of the lever 37 and thereby operates the valve near its open position and permits a greater amount of the stock material of greater uidity to pass through said valve into the machine.

The general results of my improved control device are that when the stock material is of a heavier, or less uid, consistency, a lesser amount of said material is supplied to the paper machine and, when the said material is of a greater, or more fluid, consistency, a greater amount of the said stock is supplied; thereby the thickness of the paper produced by the machine is maintained uniform.

My improved device may also be used to control the consistency of material by varying the addition of water, or other liquid which may be mixed therewith, so that, as the uidity of the material decreases less water is supplied and when the liuidity decreases more water is supplied; thereby maintaining the consistency of the material uniform, in which case the amount supplied to the paper machine will be kept constant and in that manner producing a paper of uniform thickness.

I claim:

1. A control device including an element insertable into a material, a drive shaft connected to said member, a gear on said drive shaft, power transmitting means including a countershaft, a motor for driving said countershaft, a member rotatable about the axis of said countershaft, a second countershaft carried by said member and driven by the rst countershaft, a drive pinion on said second countershaft in mesh with the said driving gear, means on said supporting member adapted to be rotated about its axis by the rotating force applied to the gear by the said pinion, a spring member for resisting the rotation of said supporting means, a mechanism for operating a valve, and means actuated by the rotation of said supporting member to actuate the said mechanism and cause operation of the valve in accordance with the amount of movement of said supporting member.

2. A control device including a frame, an element rotatable in said frame and adapted to be inserted into a material, a countershaft, a driving gear for driving said element, a motor for driving said countershaft, a supporting member rotatable in said frame, a second countershaft mounted in said supporting member and movable about the axis of the said driving gear, a pinion on said second countershaft in mesh with the driving gear, driving means between said second and rst countershafts for rotating said pinion, the said supporting member being rotatable about the axis of the driving gear in accordance with the resistance presented by the material against the rotation of the said element, a spring member resisting the rotation of the said supporting member, a lever pivotally mounted in said frame for operating a valve, a rocker bar connected to said lever, an actuating mechanism including a crank driven by said motor, dogging means actuated by said crank for reciprocal movement and engageable with the rocker bar for causing swinging movement of the valve operating lever, and a pull member movable with the rotation of the supporting member for causing movement of the actuating mechanism to cause operation of the lever and retain it in different positions in accordance with the rotation of the said supporting member.

3. A control device for controlling the supply of paper stock material to a paper machine, the said device including a frame, a bracket on said frame having a plurality of axially aligned bearings therein, a drive shaft rotatable in said bearings, a paddle member on said drive shaft adapted to be inserted into said material, a countershaft rotatable in said bearings, a motor for driving said countershafts, a pinion on said second countershaft in mesh bearings, a second countershaft rotatable on said supporting member, driving means between said second and rst countershafts, a pinion on said second countershaft in mesh with the driving gear, a spring member anchored to said frame and resisting rotation of the supporting member, a lever pivotally mounted on said frame for operating a valve, a rocker bar connected to said lever, an actuating mechanism including a crank driven by said motor and a dogging connection actuated by the said crank for moving the rocker bar to thereby operate the lever, and means responsive to the rotation of the supporting member caused by the resistance presented by the stock material against the rotation of the paddle member for moving the dog means along the rocker bar and thereby varying the operation of the lever in accordance with the degree of movement of the supporting member.

4. A control device for controlling the supply of stock to a paper machine, the said device including a frame, a plurality of bearings in said frame aligned on a vertical axis, a drive shaft rotatable in said bearings, a paddle member connected to said drive shaft and insertable in said material, a countershaft rotatable in said bearings, a motor for driving said countershaft, a supporting member rotatable about said vertical axis, a second countershaft carried by said supporting member, a pulley and belt connection between said second and first countershafts for driving the second countershaft, a driving connection between said second countershaft and the drive shaft, a spring member in said frame resisting rotation of the supporting member caused by the resistance of the stock material against the rotation of the paddle member, a rocker shaft on said frame, a valve operating lever mounted on said rocker shaft and connected to a valve controlling the supply of said stock material to a paper machine, a rocker bar extending from said rocker shaft, a supporting lever pivotally mounted in said frame, a crank driven by said motor, a dogging connection carried by said supporting lever and driven by said crank for rocking said rocker bar, and a pull element connecting said supporting lever to the supporting member for causing movement of the supporting lever in accordance with the degree of rotation of the supporting member and thereby operating the valve lever and the valve connected thereto to vary the supply of said stock to the machine in accordance with the amount of resistance presented by said stock to the rotation of the paddle member.

5. A control device for controlling the amount of paper stock supplied to a paper machine in accordance with the consistency of uidity of said stock. the said device including a frame, a bracket mounted in said frame and having a plurality of bearings thereon aligned on a vertical axis, a drive shaft rotatable in said bearings and depending from said frame, a paddle member secured to said drive shaft and insertable in said stock material` a countershaft rotatable in said bearings, a motor for driving said countershaft, an S-shaped supporting member mounted on said bracket and rotatable about said vertical axis, a second countershaft carried by said supporting member, a pulley and belt connection between the second and tirst countershafts for driving the second countershaft, a drive gear on the drive shaft, a pinion on the second countershaft in mesh with said drive gear, a post carried by said supporting member and rotatable therewith upon the said axis, a sleeve rotatably adjustable on said post, a spiral spring anchored on said frame and secured to said sleeve for resisting rotation of the supporting member caused by the resistance presented to the stock material against the rotation of the paddle member, a rocker shaft mounted upon said frame, an operating lever secured to said rocker shaft and connected to a valve controlling the supply of said material, a rocker bar extending from said rocker shaft and having a series of teeth in opposite edges thereof, a supporting lever pivoted in said frame about the axis of said crank shaft, a pitman mounted for reciprocating movement upon said supporting lever and operated by said crank, opposed dogging members on said pitman engageable with the said teeth of the rocker bar for moving the said bar in opposite directions, und a pull member between the said sleeve and supporting lever for rocking said supporting lever in accordance with the rotation of the supporting member and thereby causing movement of the valve operating lever to vary the ow of the supply of stock material in accordance with the consistency or fluidity thereof.

Hogarth May 10 ,1892 Ruetschi Oct. l0, 1916 Beadle Mar. 23, 1926 Meyers Sept. 29, 1931 Maxey t, Dec. 29, 1931 Given .lune 2l, 1932 Thomas June 5, 1934 Poirier Aug. 2, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain June l5, 1931 Great Britain Feb. 13, 1952 Italy May 18, 1935 Sweden June 1, 1954 

